Tuesday, March 08, 2005
The Mommy Mobile
It's taken the better part of my first three days back in Florida to finally feel my fingertips again after the cold and snow in Maryland. Being warm is such a cozy feeling and the sunshine is glorious for this sun deprived Northerner. Thawing out after months of cold is much like coming out of a cocoon.....a slow, slightly painful experience but very fulfilling in the end. Sounds something like a butterfly story doesn't it? Actually the two situations are quite similar and this butterfly is happy to have broken loose from the frigid grip of winter.
Although getting warm was the impetus for this trip, there were several other reasons for visiting. My mother just had a birthday on March 5th so I thought I'd surprise her and join my sisters and father in celebrating another milestone. To hear Ma tell it, she's 39 and holding but in human years she's actually 84. Outside of a hip operation, she's in remarkably good condition but, being my mother, she enjoys holding court and being waited on. The more fuss the better. Red Lobster happens to be one of her favorite restaurants so we all gathered at her house on Sunday to whisk her away to the lobster of her choice.
Normally when I visit I rent a Dodge Stratus, however, this time around it seems there were no mid-size cars available so I was offered the choice of a smaller vehicle or a free upgrade to a larger car. Since I normally drive a Jeep, the thought of anything smaller than the Stratus was not comforting so the obvious choice would be the larger vehicle.....that is, until the smiling young man across the counter announced that all he had left was a mini-van! Certain I had misheard him, I repeated "MINI-van??". Sure enough, my ears were perfectly tuned and he had actually suggested a mini-van. Why in the world anyone would think that one person might require this mini-van was beyond me. Besides I honestly don't look anything like a soccer mom. As the young agent politely pointed to the long line of potential renters behind me, I finally reluctantly agreed to the van. Good grief...what happened to Jeeps or Chryslers.......Mini-van...hmpf!!
Since there were five of us attending Ma's birthday bash, I readily offered to drive the "Mommy Mobile" as I had come to refer to this vehicle. Getting my mother into most any vehicle is a test of patience and the van was no exception. First she has to make her way to the vehicle using her "Red Cadillac", a fancy wheeled walker complete with carrying pouch and hand-brakes. Then she manuevers into position and with much huffing and puffing settles into her seat. Lest you think I'm not sympathetic to the inconvenience of aging, keep in mind Ma tends to be a bit of an actress...not quite Academy Award material but nonetheless pretty good at times.
So off we go to the local Red Lobster, appetites increasing as we approach the restaurant. Settling in at our table we intently peruse the menu...except for Dad who has already decided on his favorite, Fish and Chips. The menu is quite expansive and the colorful pictures of various seafood concoctions don't make choices any easier.
Finally we all commit to our choice of entree and the meal begins. Beginning with the Ceasar salad, we all notice a rather strong presence of salt in the dressing. As the meal progresses we conclude that someone in the kitchen has an obvious love affair with the salt shaker since even the skin of the baked potatoe was coated with salt. Since a large part of the Florida population tends to be somewhat elderly, we wonder what percentage of the restaurant's clientele might notice an elevation in blood pressure after eating at this Red Lobster. Although the service was good and the food probably better with a little less salt....after all, how does one make coconut covered shrimp taste salty.....we were all feeling a bit dehydrated by the time we were done. Ending with a chocolate cake provided by the restaurant, we sang "Happy Birthday" to Ma as she blew out the candle.
In spite of toxic salt levels, a good time was had by all and Ma continues to be 39 and holding and holding and holding.
It's taken the better part of my first three days back in Florida to finally feel my fingertips again after the cold and snow in Maryland. Being warm is such a cozy feeling and the sunshine is glorious for this sun deprived Northerner. Thawing out after months of cold is much like coming out of a cocoon.....a slow, slightly painful experience but very fulfilling in the end. Sounds something like a butterfly story doesn't it? Actually the two situations are quite similar and this butterfly is happy to have broken loose from the frigid grip of winter.
Although getting warm was the impetus for this trip, there were several other reasons for visiting. My mother just had a birthday on March 5th so I thought I'd surprise her and join my sisters and father in celebrating another milestone. To hear Ma tell it, she's 39 and holding but in human years she's actually 84. Outside of a hip operation, she's in remarkably good condition but, being my mother, she enjoys holding court and being waited on. The more fuss the better. Red Lobster happens to be one of her favorite restaurants so we all gathered at her house on Sunday to whisk her away to the lobster of her choice.
Normally when I visit I rent a Dodge Stratus, however, this time around it seems there were no mid-size cars available so I was offered the choice of a smaller vehicle or a free upgrade to a larger car. Since I normally drive a Jeep, the thought of anything smaller than the Stratus was not comforting so the obvious choice would be the larger vehicle.....that is, until the smiling young man across the counter announced that all he had left was a mini-van! Certain I had misheard him, I repeated "MINI-van??". Sure enough, my ears were perfectly tuned and he had actually suggested a mini-van. Why in the world anyone would think that one person might require this mini-van was beyond me. Besides I honestly don't look anything like a soccer mom. As the young agent politely pointed to the long line of potential renters behind me, I finally reluctantly agreed to the van. Good grief...what happened to Jeeps or Chryslers.......Mini-van...hmpf!!
Since there were five of us attending Ma's birthday bash, I readily offered to drive the "Mommy Mobile" as I had come to refer to this vehicle. Getting my mother into most any vehicle is a test of patience and the van was no exception. First she has to make her way to the vehicle using her "Red Cadillac", a fancy wheeled walker complete with carrying pouch and hand-brakes. Then she manuevers into position and with much huffing and puffing settles into her seat. Lest you think I'm not sympathetic to the inconvenience of aging, keep in mind Ma tends to be a bit of an actress...not quite Academy Award material but nonetheless pretty good at times.
So off we go to the local Red Lobster, appetites increasing as we approach the restaurant. Settling in at our table we intently peruse the menu...except for Dad who has already decided on his favorite, Fish and Chips. The menu is quite expansive and the colorful pictures of various seafood concoctions don't make choices any easier.
Finally we all commit to our choice of entree and the meal begins. Beginning with the Ceasar salad, we all notice a rather strong presence of salt in the dressing. As the meal progresses we conclude that someone in the kitchen has an obvious love affair with the salt shaker since even the skin of the baked potatoe was coated with salt. Since a large part of the Florida population tends to be somewhat elderly, we wonder what percentage of the restaurant's clientele might notice an elevation in blood pressure after eating at this Red Lobster. Although the service was good and the food probably better with a little less salt....after all, how does one make coconut covered shrimp taste salty.....we were all feeling a bit dehydrated by the time we were done. Ending with a chocolate cake provided by the restaurant, we sang "Happy Birthday" to Ma as she blew out the candle.
In spite of toxic salt levels, a good time was had by all and Ma continues to be 39 and holding and holding and holding.
